Don't farm, cultivate immortality!

From all perspectives, this is indeed a very difficult decision.

Although Yan Huai'an took the most valuable demon core, the remaining parts are still priceless.

A tiger's skin is enough to qualify as a valuable decoration in the main hall of a prince or princess, let alone this demonic creature.

Even if the tiger spirit's skin isn't perfectly intact, once it's peeled off, it will surely be snapped up by the powerful and wealthy, who will use it as a topic of conversation to boast about to their guests.

Besides tiger skin, tiger bones and tiger penis are also valuable medicinal materials. Tiger claws and tiger teeth can be used to make weapons. Tiger meat is a rare delicacy. Many people believe that eating tiger meat can strengthen the body. If you were to dismantle all the tiger's essence and exchange it for money, you could easily make thousands of taels of gold, let alone tens of thousands.

Such an expensive item, if left to these villagers to handle, is uncertain whether they can get a good price, and is quite likely to cause trouble.

"A common man is innocent, but possessing a treasure is a crime." Many years ago, Zhuang Xing learned this principle from a textbook. The old hunter and the village chief had lived for so many years and knew their own limitations.

Having wealth without matching strength will eventually lead to losing it all.

A small bargain is fine, but if the bargain is so big that it makes others envious, murder and robbery are not uncommon occurrences.

Yan Huai'an was willing to take the lion's share and leave some for himself; this was the solution that the village chief and the hunters could accept. Whoever took the lion's share would bear the risk, so they wouldn't get into trouble. But letting them take everything sounded tempting, but it was the worst possible solution.

"Sir, demon slayer, please allow us to discuss this matter," the village chief said.

Yan Huai'an nodded, and the village chief then pulled the hunter and Zhuang Xing's mother aside to discuss the matter.

After a while, they returned.

Perhaps because her mother was the most familiar with Yan Huai'an among the villagers, the village chief assigned her the task of communicating with him.

"I wonder if Miss Yan has anyone traveling with her?" her mother asked.

Yan Huai'an shook his head.

"Miss Yan, do you have any elderly family members waiting at home?"

Yan Huai'an shook his head.

"Miss Yan, is there something urgent that you need to leave?"

Yan Huai'an shook his head.

...

My mother asked seven or eight questions in a row. It was clear that she had carefully considered the questions and tried to make sure that each question could be answered with just "yes" or "no".

Zhuang Xing noticed the common thread in these questions: they were all basically trying to find out Yan Huai'an's next course of action.

If Yan Huai'an wasn't hiding anything, then her answer revealed that she was a lone wolf who hadn't joined any organization or sect, and hadn't planned where she was going next. The only thing she was doing recently was killing that tiger spirit.

Zhuang Xing roughly guessed the village chief's intentions. These questions were like a man asking a woman if she was free next week or if she had a lot of things to do at home.

The village chief probably wanted Yan Huai'an to stay for a while. If they could keep such a strong and virtuous female warrior, the uneasy atmosphere in the village would ease a lot. They could also buy more time to deal with the tiger spirit and find a more suitable solution that would be acceptable to both sides.

It just so happens that it's winter now, a good time to find a place to settle down. If Yan Huai'an were a wandering demon hunter who kills wherever he goes, he would probably be willing to spend the winter in the village. That's probably what the village chief is thinking.

The suggestion sounds good, and a normal person might accept it, but when it comes to a female knight-errant... Zhuang Xing feels there are still many uncertainties.

After all, the village chief didn't seem to have considered why she had become a lone wolf with no friends or organization.

Chapter 11 Late Stage of Social Anxiety (Please Read On)

As expected, after asking about Yan Huai'an's basic situation, Mother asked the most crucial question.

“It’s like this, Miss Yan,” her mother said. “Winter came late this year, and it’s not the coldest time yet. The nearest town is quite a distance away, and if we encounter snow on the way, we might lose our way. If you don’t have anything urgent, Miss Yan, there’s no need to rush to leave. You can rest in the village for a while longer. The village can provide both accommodation and food for free.”

"I wonder what Miss Yan's opinion is, whether she would like to stay?"

"..." Miss Huai'an's expression turned serious.

Zhuang Xing felt her straighten up and her gaze drift towards the group of people surrounding the tiger corpse.

She didn't answer for a long time, but Zhuang Xing noticed that she was hugging him tighter and tighter, making it hard for him to breathe, and the back of his head was sinking into her.

“If you cannot make a decision right now, sir, we can return to the village first,” the village chief interjected. “Regardless of whether you stay or leave, as the benefactor of the village, we should treat you well.”

“Yes, even if Miss Yan wants to leave, she should rest well and be fully prepared before she goes,” Mother said. “Let’s go back to the village first.”

At this point, Yan Huai'an finally nodded.

The group turned back, with the old hunter and a few others staying behind, while the rest followed back to the village.

The village chief stopped at the village entrance and announced on the spot that the tiger spirit was dead.

"This is Lord Yan Huai'an," the village chief introduced to the villagers. "It was this demon-slaying sage who beheaded that man-eating tiger demon. This morning, Lord Yan led me and the old hunter to see the tiger demon's corpse. Although the demon was as tall as a house, it is now head and body separated, and it is dead beyond any doubt. Villagers, you can rest assured and go home."

As soon as the village chief introduced him, dozens of people stared at Yan Huai'an, and a faint murmur arose from below.

Zhuang Xing felt a sense of being crowded, like squeezing onto a subway during rush hour. The female warrior held him tightly, perhaps treating him like a protective talisman, as if she would have drawn her sword if he weren't in her arms right now.

But if she were to draw her sword here, her status as the "benefactor of the village" would come to an end.

She's so bad at communicating with people that if she can't explain herself clearly, those strange looks will definitely scare her away.

Zhuang Xing thought that this was why she hadn't agreed to stay yet.

Given her easily misunderstood personality, she likely encountered many similar situations while exorcising demons.

"Lord Yan, why did you draw your sword!"

"..."

"Was it our poor hospitality? Lord Yan, we can talk this over."

"..."

"Lord Yan, say something! Why won't you speak!"

"..."

Zhuang Xing's mind was racing. Even when he was a baby and remained silent, his brain was working at high speed.

He imagined the heroine's past experiences in his mind.

Perhaps some people saw her great skills and were her teammates for a while, but later they parted ways due to various misunderstandings.

Over time, she became increasingly withdrawn, to the point that she had to carve words on bamboo sticks every day to practice in order to have basic communication with people.

If that's the case, then this scene must be like hell for her.

Zhuang Xing considers himself a relatively extroverted person, but if he were suddenly called up to the podium by the teacher during class and dozens of people were staring at him, he would still feel nervous.

Based on this, we can imagine how withdrawn a person who has experienced many psychological traumas in front of a crowd would be if faced with the same situation.

At this moment, dozens of people were focused on Yan Huai'an, the "Tiger-Slaying Heroine." The whispers around them were like the intermittent buzzing of mosquitoes.

Yan Huai'an stood motionless, her gaze directed at the crowd in front of her, but Zhuang Xing felt that she was looking at something else entirely. Her eyes were vacant, as if veiled by a layer of mist.

Judging from her appearance, she would only seem like an unapproachable, eternally cold iceberg, but in reality, it's hard to say. Zhuang Xing could only feel her hugging him tightly and could even hear her heartbeat.

...

My heart is beating so fast. No, Miss Huai'an, are you really that nervous?

She appears to be an ice queen, but is actually the ultimate socially awkward person who is too shy to talk to anyone. What an incredibly cute anime/manga attribute! Why don't you buy a guitar and form a band?

Zhuang Xing thought to himself that he never expected the female swordsman, whose swordsmanship was so superb, to be like this in private.

He didn't expect it, and no one else could have imagined it either.

After the village chief introduced Yan Huai'an, someone stepped forward and walked up to him. It was unclear whether he wanted to thank him or simply want to become a familiar face to him.

However, at this moment, Yan Huai'an's eyes were as cold as ice, like a stagnant pool.

The villagers standing in front shivered and immediately cowered.

"I...I'm so sorry to have disturbed you, sir!" The villager bowed in bewilderment, then shrank back and ran away.

Yan Huai'an lowered his head, and Zhuang Xing thought he heard a regretful sigh, though he wasn't sure if it was just his imagination.

Seeing that things were not going well, the village chief immediately stepped forward to take control of the situation.

"Fellow villagers, let's disperse for now." The village chief changed the subject. "If you are still uneasy, you can gather at the village entrance this afternoon. I have already spoken with the old hunter, and he will take you to see where that tiger demon was buried. Please rest assured, even that tiger demon was beheaded by Lord Yan. Any other monsters that break in will only be courting death."

The tense atmosphere eased considerably after the village chief said that.

Last night's commotion caused widespread panic, and many people didn't sleep a wink. Upon receiving the news that the tiger demon was dead, their tense nerves relaxed, and fatigue washed over them like a tidal wave. Many people took one last look at Yan Huai'an, memorizing the image of this demon hunter, before dispersing to go home to rest and cook.

Yan Huai'an held Zhuang Xing's hand, finally relaxing a bit.

Afterwards, the village chief led Yan Huai'an back to the house where she had rested earlier.

The village chief said, "Lord Yan, please rest here for a while. We will prepare lunch for you."

Yan Huai'an sat down, and being indoors, her emotions stabilized considerably.

The village chief nodded and said, "Zhu He, why don't you go and sleep in the next room for a while? That room has been cleaned up. Apart from Yun Shu's family, you are the one who was most frightened in the village. Take good care of yourself and don't hurt yourself."

"Thank you, Village Chief," the mother said, looking at Zhuang Xing in Yan Huai'an's arms.

Zhuang Xing knew he couldn't be naughty anymore; he'd had enough fun. Although he was a little worried about the heroine's mental state, he figured that she was a grown woman who had killed demons and monsters, so it shouldn't be something for a three-month-old baby like him to worry about.

He reached out his hand to his mother and cried out a few times.

"Miss Yan, thank you for taking care of Zhuang'er. I hope you won't think Zhuang'er is too naughty." The mother pulled Zhuang Xing back.

"No...no..."

Zhuang Xing felt the female knight's gaze fixed on him.

"Then Zhu He will take her leave. Please rest assured, the village chief will certainly treat you well. I'll be right next door. If Miss Yan has any requests, you can tell me first." The mother nodded and left with Zhuang Xing in her arms.

Zhuang Xing turned around and found that the female knight seemed to be staring at him. He waved to her, and she was stunned for a moment before raising her hand and waving back at him in a small gesture.

Is this considered a greeting?

I guess so. It's a really strange feeling. Even though he hadn't spoken to the female warrior, he felt like he was getting to know her.

Chapter 12 Under Control

The mother carried Zhuang Xing to the guest room next door, rubbed her eyes, and yawned.

She must have been very tired, but she didn't forget to change Zhuang Xing's diaper and feed him.

After finishing all these daily tasks, Mother sat on the bed, sighed, and rubbed Zhuang Xing's face, her face contorted with worry.

Zhuang Xing touched his mother's face with his little hands and hugged her neck.